Corpus Christi College, University of Oxford

Image credit: Stephen Harrison

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The College has a modest collection of items, largely connected with its own history, which have generally been presented to it over the years. Most of its holdings are portraits of former members of the College; there are also some landscapes of the College and Oxford, including two good pieces (one watercolour) by William Turner of Oxford, and a few pieces of sculpture from the nineteenth century (Francis Chantrey, Joseph Edgar Boehm) and twentieth century (Jacob Epstein). The most notable item in the collection is the altarpiece in the chapel, a Rubens of the Adoration of the Shepherds; this was presented to the College in 1804 and is related to other Rubens paintings; it is parallel to the well-known 'Adoration of the Magi' in the chapel of King’s College Cambridge (these are the only two Rubens altarpieces in ecclesiastical buildings in the UK). The College normally commissions portraits of outgoing Presidents, but does not have an active acquisitions policy. It is stressed that the paintings at Corpus Christi College are not in public ownership. In accordance with the charitable aims of the College, which is a private institution, we are including our paintings on this website to widen public awareness and for the benefit of scholarship. The collection is not normally open to the public, though the Rubens altarpiece in the Chapel can be viewed during normal visiting hours (1.30pm–4.30pm daily). Those with research interests in the collection and wishing to see particular pieces should contact Professor Stephen Harrison, the Keeper of Pictures stephen.harrison@ccc.ox.ac.uk.

Merton Street, Oxford, Oxfordshire OX1 4JF England

stephen.harrison@ccc.ox.ac.uk

01865 276700

The collection is not normally open to the public, though the Rubens altarpiece in the Chapel can be viewed during normal visiting hours (1.30pm–4.30pm daily). Those with research interests in the collection and wishing to see particular pieces should contact Professor Stephen Harrison, the Keeper of Pictures stephen.harrison@ccc.ox.ac.uk.

https://www.ccc.ox.ac.uk/